1. Technical Field
The invention relates generally to transactions systems. More particularly, the invention relates to an all transactions relational data base carrying access and linking keys to multiple image archives and databases.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Financial institutions are generally required to maintain archives of financial documents and related data for several years. Further, many financial institutions find themselves in the situation where they need to keep up with the times with respect to the deployment of newer technologies, such as image technology. In practice, the deployment of image technology can involve billions of document images typically stored in check archives. Also, those institutions committed to such technical deployment find themselves financially committed in the range of up to several hundred million dollars. Therefore, because the deployment of new technology for financial institutions is a huge and expensive endeavor, such institutions are highly motivated to recoup their former investments and efforts in earlier technologies. In addition, financial institutions find that many customers are attracted to products based on new technology, such as image-based products. The use of a computer-based image processing system or image capture platform to scan documents, such as checks and the like, and to then digitally store the results on storage devices is generally known in the art, as follows:
John Ray Copeland, III, Leslie Marie Doby, Larry Page Hobbs, Jr., Vil Patrick Johnikin, Julie Ann Pridmore, Sterling Richardson Smith, Thomas Chester Smith, Lori London Weaver, and Filip Jay Yeskel, Check Image Distribution and Processing System and Method, U.S. Pat. No. 5,784,610 (Jul. 21, 1998) disclose a digital document image archive and distribution system that includes an archive system and a distributed digital document image retrieval system. The system has communication nodes located at an image capture site and at one or more remote archive retrieval sites, these sites forming a communications network operating as a chained client/server network composed of workstation components and a capture site host computer component. An originating remote workstation retrieves a digital document image from the image capture site by creating a transaction file that identifies a digital document image to be retrieved. This transaction file is sent to a remote server workstation whereat a plurality of transaction files are batched by priority. The batched transaction files are transmitted to the capture site workstation whereat the host component retrieves a group of digital document images from archive storage, including the digital document image that is identified by the transaction file. The host then sends the group of digital document images to a capture site server workstation, which workstation then sends the group of digital document images from the capture site server workstation to the remote server workstation, whereupon the group of digital document images is sent from the remote server workstation to the originating remote workstation. A visual display is then used to image process the group of digital document images at the originating remote workstation.
David T. Bellinger and Isabelle R. Moss, High Volume Financial Image Media Creation and Display System and Method, U.S. Pat. No. 5,870,725 (Feb. 9, 1999) disclose an apparatus and method for high volume, and high speed, financial image creation and manipulation. Images of cleared checks are captured and combined with MICR data and customer supplied account history. A customer additional data field is incorporated to facilitate searching and retrieval of checks and electronic transactions. Check images are delivered in multiple media, e.g. CD-ROM, microfilm, as pre-selected by bank customer. An image workstation allows customers to relate specific issue data to paid check data captured by the bank. Cumulative transaction item index covers multiple accounting periods. Front and back of image of cleared checks can be manipulated on screen, and exported to other applications. Graphical user interface trilogy of screens—search, results, and display, facilitate usage by customer.
Thomas Cahill, John J. McMonagle, Richard H. Sferra, Glenn Levine, Saul Goldfisher, and PhilipWilson, Method And Apparatus For Storing Images Of Documents Having Magnetic Ink Code Line, U.S. Pat. No. 5,917,965 (Jun. 29, 1999) disclose a method and apparatus for storing and retrieving images of documents, e.g. checks. The method comprises placing a plurality of documents in a document imaging machine and forming an electronic image of each document, storing each electronic image in an electronic storage device, providing at least one user interface device in communication on a communication link with the electronic storage device, placing a request for at least one document image on the user interface device, transmitting the request by the communication link to the electronic storage device, searching the electronic storage device for the requested electronic image of the document, retrieving the at least one electronic image or providing an indication that the image was not found, storing the electronic image, if found, in an electronic file, for transmission to the user interface device at user option, providing the electronic image to the user interface device at command of a user at the user interface device for storage at the user interface device and displaying the requested electronic image on a display of the User interface device. Preferably, the electronic, images are stored with embedded identifying information in a TIFF® (trademark of Aldus Corp.) file format and the check images can be displayed on a display device which permits the user to view both sides of the checks simultaneously and perform functions such as zooming and rotation of the images.
Thomas Cahill, John J. McMonagle, and Richard H. Sferra, Method and Apparatus for Displaying Electronic Image of a Check, U.S. Pat. No. 5,940,844 (Aug. 17, 1999) disclose a method and apparatus for storing and retrieving images of documents, e.g. checks. The method comprises placing a plurality of documents in a document imaging machine and forming an electronic image of each document, storing each electronic image in an electronic storage device, providing at least one user interface device in communication on a communication link with the electronic storage device, placing a request for at least one document image on the user interface device, transmitting the request by the communication link to the electronic storage device, searching the electronic storage device for the requested electronic image of the document, retrieving the at least one electronic image or providing an indication that the image was not found, storing the electronic image, if found, in an electronic file, for transmission to the user interface device at user option, providing the electronic image to the user interface device at command of a user at the user interface device for storage at the user interface device and displaying the requested electronic image on a display of the user interface device. Preferably, the electronic, images are stored with embedded identifying information in a TIFF® (trademark of Aldus Corp.) file format and the check images can be displayed on a display device which permits the user to view both sides of the checks simultaneously and perform functions such as zooming and rotation of the images.
Thomas Cahill, Louise A. McNulty, John J. McMonagle, Richard H. Sferra, Glenn Levine, Saul Goldfisher, Philip Wilson, and Vladimir Koroteyev, Electronic Check Image Storage and Retrieval System, U.S. Pat. No. 6,181,837 (Jan. 30, 2001) disclose a method and apparatus for storing and retrieving images of documents, e.g. checks. The method comprises placing a plurality of documents in a document imaging machine and forming an electronic image of each document, storing each electronic image in an electronic storage device, providing at least one user interface device in communication on a communication link with the electronic storage device, placing a request for at least one document image on the user interface device, transmitting the request by the communication link to the electronic storage device, searching the electronic storage device for the requested electronic image of the document, retrieving the at least one electronic image or providing an indication that the image was not found, storing the electronic image, if found, in an electronic file, for transmission to the user interface device at user option, providing the electronic image to the user interface device at command of a user at the user interface device for storage at the user interface device and displaying the requested electronic image on a display of the user interface device. Preferably, the electronic, images are stored with embedded identifying information in a TIFF® (trademark of Aldus Corp.) file format and the check images can be displayed on a display device which permits the user to view both sides of the checks simultaneously and perform functions such as zooming and rotation of the images.
Filip Jay Yeskel, High Volume Document Image Archive System and Method, U.S. Pat. No. 6,115,509 (Sep. 5, 2000) teaches high speed machine scanning of documents such as checks that produces digital check images that are placed in archival storage on mass storage devices for later retrieval. Images and/or documents are automatically reviewed by a machine in order to identify images and/or documents that are of suspect quality. Machine review of suspect images and/or documents provides a reject or accept decision. Only acceptable documents are archived. Accepted documents are formed into large data groups that contain a storage location identification for each individual document within the large data group. An index is stored for each such data group wherein the storage location of each document within the large data group is contained. Digital images are selectively converted to visual images, and these visual images are then reviewed by a human operator. This operator review is used to adjust the machine's accept/reject decision making process, thereby teaching the machine the correct manner of making its accept/reject decision.
It should be appreciated that the disclosures described hereinabove lack certain significant functionality as put forth hereinbelow:
None of the disclosures hereinabove provide a comprehensive index of all paper and electronic transactions allowing for all transactions to be matched to one or more images; provide a system and process capable of accessing multiple internal and external archive systems and operating independently from the archive systems; and provide a system and process capable of satisfying requests for images from microfilm at an item level.
It would therefore be advantageous to provide a comprehensive index of all paper and electronic transactions allowing for all transactions to be matched to one or more images; to provide a system and process capable of accessing multiple internal and external archive systems and operating independently from the archive systems; and to provide a system and process capable of satisfying requests for images from microfilm at an item level.
Furthermore, it would be advantageous to provide means for leveraging previously developed and deployed check image archive investments; to manage a transaction level transition from microfilm storage to digital image storage; to provide a method and apparatus for handling customer transaction conversions while maintaining a path to the image at hand, e.g. conversions from paper payment transactions to electronic (ACH) transactions; to provide a method and apparatus for customers to store information about digital images; to establish a common set of delivery and access services to internal and external users; to provide a method and apparatus for ingesting information about purchased check images; to provide a method and apparatus for linking supporting transaction informational data or digital images to an individual transaction; to provide robust transaction search capability; and to provide a single source for proof of transaction.